#torn between cap and g-poke

[rosemaidenvixen]

A Secret’s Worth

Chapter 18: Barbara

Ao3

Content warning: graphic description of injuries, mentions of violence

“Dr. Lake that was the Blood Bank, they really want their cooler back,”

Barbara winced, three hours ago she’d had an eighty year old patient come in with a GI bleed and an H and H of 4 g/dl and 11%. She’d only just gotten them stable after a lot of frantic work and two emergency issue units of O Neg. Keeping track of the blood cooler had been the last thing on her mind.

But it would not pay to get on the Blood bank’s bad side. They were highly protective of their blood coolers, and they remembered everything.

“It should be in room three, if not let me know and I’ll help you look for it,”

The RN nodded once and then headed off in search of the wayward cooler.

Barbara waited a few more seconds before she allowed herself to lean back in her seat and take a sip of her water. The ED had finally calmed down to the point that she could afford to slip away from the floor and take a breather. Hopefully things would stay quiet enough that she could spend her fifteen minutes in peace.

Apparently that was too much to ask because four minutes into her break someone else was poking their head into the break room.

“Dr. Lake?” it was Miranda, the charge nurse for the ED who had been there twice as long as she had.

Barbara bit the inside of her cheek and forced her tone to be light “Yes?”

“We have an assault victim in the ED,”

The beginnings of a frown pulled at her lips. An assault victim, but not a full trauma that would require all hands on deck. If that had been the case they would have announced it over the intercom. 

“Is Dr. Jenkins available to take care of them?”

“He is-- and he’s actually looking him over right now,”

This time Barbara let the frown show on her face “Then what do you need me for?” she was trying her darndest not to snap at Miranda, but for goodness sakes, she knew how precious their breaks were.

“That’s...that’s not why I came here,” Miranda dropped her gaze, taking a deep breath before she met Barbara’s eyes again “The assault victim...it’s...it’s Jim,”

For a moment time stood still, Barbara not registering what she had just heard. A few seconds staring at the pained expression on Miranda’s face was what it took for the truth to sink in.

The paper cup slipped from her fingers as she practically jumped out of her chair, heartbeat in her throat and limbs tingling with electricity. Barely heard water splashing against the linoleum past the roaring in her ears.

Suddenly taking a break was the last thing on her mind.

“Where is he?”

“Exam room twelve, and I already talked to Sue, she says you’re good to take the rest of your shift off,”

Barbara was already out the door and moving “Thank you,”

Miranda gave her a nod just before she disappeared from sight as Barbara dashed around the corner.

An assault victim. Jim. Her Jim. Not a full trauma, she would have heard. His life wasn’t at risk. But that didn’t mean it couldn’t be very very bad.

Glancing to the right, she kept an eye on the door numbers ticking by as she sprinted down the hall.

Eighteen, sixteen, fourteen, twelve--

Barbara stopped short, hands flying over her mouth, stifling her horrified gasp into a low whimper.

Jim was sitting on the exam room table holding an ice pack to his temple, blue jacket splattered in dark stains that could only be blood. She couldn’t see his face clearly, Dr. Jenkins stood between them examining Jim’s scalp while a large man in sweatpants loitered in the corner, twisting a baseball cap in his hands and watching Jim and Jenkins with an anxious look on his face. 

As troubling as the sight was, it did give her a small measure of relief.

If Jim’s injuries were critical he wouldn’t be conscious and sitting upright. The fact that he was cognizant enough to sit there and calmly let Jenkins examine him was good news in and of itself. 

Unfortunately that still left a lot of room for some very serious possibilities.

Stuffing her fears onto a shell of clinical composure, Barbara pulled open the door and stepped into the room “D-- Dr. Jenkins, how bad is it?”

All three of them turned towards her, allowing Barbara to see the full extent of Jim’s injuries. The sight hit her like a fist to the gust, nearly making her stagger.

Jenkins had no doubt cleaned the worst of it up, but it still looked awful. From the neck up Jim’s skin was punctuated by splashes of bright red where the skin was ripped open. Wounds ranging in size from short, thin cuts to gashes the size of a silver dollar. Most of them were already scabbed over, but some were fresh and oozing neon red blood. The skin that wasn’t torn and bleeding was mottled with inky dark bruises, colored in every shade from indigo to black. Both of his lips were split, his nose crooked; both puffed up to twice their normal size. 

Jim lowered the ice pack, revealing that one of his eyes was swollen shut as well, and sluggishly looked over at her. His right eye, the only visible one, was bleary and unfocused, that was probably from--

“Did you give him morphine?”

Jenkins stammered for a moment before recovering “Ah uh yes, I did,”

“Did you check--”

“Dr. Lake,” Jenkins’ tone was soft but firm, his gaze even more so.

Barbara flushed.

Jenkins had been at the clinic for over seven years. He was every inch as skilled as she was; undercutting him like this was unprofessional, unhelpful, and downright rude. 

Right now Jenkins was the doctor. Barbara’s job was to be a mother and be there for Jim.

“I-- I’m sorry,”

He let out a breath, shoulders relaxing “That’s ok, no harm done, fortunately I can tell you right now that Jim does not have a concussion and all of his cuts are superficial, and should heal with minimal scarring,”

A massive weight lifted off her chest.

“That’s...that’s good to hear,”

“Uh loth a ooth an muh nuz,” Jim mumbled from the bench.

“Don’t try to talk, you could make your injuries worse,” Jenkins looked back towards Barbara, uncomfortable “However he did loose a tooth and I believe his nose is broken,”

Barbara’s stomach sank another inch.

“I’m just about done cleaning and dressing his injuries, once I’ve finished I can give you a more complete run down,”

She nodded slowly, willing the adrenaline to flow away as she stepped towards the exam table “Jim, hon, I know you’re probably feeling pretty lousy right now, but is there anything we can do for you?”

Jim lifted his head and shook it once, raising the ice pack back over his swollen eye.

Barbara had to swallow hard to keep the twisting feeling in her belly under control “Dr. Jenkins needs to finish looking you over, but I’ll be right here if you need anything,”

He looked her in the eye and nodded again. Barbara gently took one of Jim’s hands in her own, giving his fingers a light squeeze. Looking back over towards Jenkins, she met his eyes and then inclined her head towards Jim, giving him the go-ahead to continue.

Taking the queue, Jenkins stepped back up and once again took Jim’s scalp in his hands “Ok Jim remember, some pressure is normal, but if you feel any sharp pain let me know…”

Barbara stood vigil while Jenkins dressed Jim’s injuries. Cleaning the skin with a damp cloth, Jim hissing as he did, closing the smaller cuts with butterfly bandages, taping gauze over the worst of them.

She forced herself to watch in silence, if Jenkins wanted her opinion he would ask for it, keeping her attention focused on Jim himself.

These weren’t injuries from just a punch or two, someone had come after Jim with a frightening amount of violence. But who? And what exactly had happened? Jim should have been at school, had another student done this to him? 

Curious, she glanced over at Jim’s hands, both the one holding the ice pack and the one in her grasp. The skin over both of them was completely intact, untouched by bruises or cuts.

“Alright I think I’ve got everything taken care of for now,” Jenkins stepped back and peeled off his gloves, gaze flickering between Barbara and Jim “Ok Jim, next I’d like to take you to get some x-rays done. I want to see if there’s any other bone damage beyond what we can see in your nose, quite frankly I’m concerned about the possibility if a le fort fracture,”

Even though her guts were curdling at the thought of Jim dealing with a le fort fracture, Barbara nevertheless stayed composed and nodded tersely at his words “Ok,”

Jenkins let out a gusty sigh, running a hand through his hair “I’ll level with you Jim, we’re probably going to be keeping you overnight for observation,”

Her heart stopped “I-- I’m sorry, what?”

“Just as a precaution,” Jenkins raised a placating hand, misunderstanding the cause of her distress “I don’t want to risk aggravating any fractures, after we get the x rays back we’ll know a little bit more and be able to come up with a game plan,”

For his part Jim hadn’t reacted at all, most likely too out of it from the injuries and painkillers. But Barbara was doing enough panicking for two.

They couldn’t. That wasn’t an option. If Jim stayed in the hospital overnight everyone would see-- Oh god what if he actually needed surgery to repair some fractures? How would they even--

With tremendous force of will, Barbara smothering her rising panic and schooled her features to show only the appropriate amount of concern while she helped Jim to his feet. 

Now was not the time to lose her cool, and there was a chance Jim would be discharged before sundown and she would have nothing to worry about. The only thing she knew for certain at the moment was that Jim needed to get those x-rays done.

With her guiding arm around his shoulders, she was able to pull a sluggish Jim to the door, following along behind Jenkins. They headed down the hall to the ED’s imaging room, Barbara easing Jim down into one of the waiting chairs when they got there. Jenkins poked his head into the room, exchanging words with one of the techs.

“It should just be a minute while they get everything ready,”

Jim leaned back in his chair with a groan, Barbara laying a hand on his shoulder.

“Umm...excuse me, Dr. Lake,”

Startled, Barbara looked over to see the large man she’d first noticed in the exam room, with everything that had been going on she’d all but forgotten he was here.

“I’m, uh….Coach Lawrence, from your son’s school. Do you mind if we talk for a bit?” his eyes flitted back and forth “Somewhere private?”

“I’m not sure if….” Barbara glanced back.

Jenkins gave her a nod “Go ahead, I’ll take care of Jim while we wait for the x-ray,”

Her gaze flickered over to Jim, who gave her a single affirmative nod.

Pulling her professional shell tight around her, Barbara turned back towards Lawrence “Ok, let’s step over into the lounge,”

They hustled to the small room at the end of the hall, Barbara shutting the door behind them “What happened to my son?”

Lawrence flinched “Jim was...in an altercation with another student,”

“An altercation? You mean a fight!?”

He flushed “Yes-- ummm…a fight,”

Despite being incredibly anxious about the extent of Jim’s injuries, and terrified of the possibility that he might need to be admitted, Barbara still found room to be absolutely furious.

“I saw his hands, they were completely clean; no cuts, no bruises, no defensive wounds. This wasn’t a fight, my son didn’t throw a single punch,”

With every word she said Lawrence squirmed even more “You’re….you’re not wrong, in any case principal Levit and superintendent Kuhn would like to have a a meeting tomorrow morning, to go over exactly what happened, with both boys and their parents present,”

Barbara could feel her face darken “You want my son in the same room as the boy who did that to him?”

Despite the fact that he towered above her Lawrence was shrinking under her gaze “The superintendent wants everyone involved there,” he jabbered out in a high pitched voice “Steve, the other student involved, is...also making accusations,” 

Her heart skipped a beat. Steve, that was a name Barbara had heard before.

Standing a little taller now, Lawrence continued “But both myself and a police officer will be present at this meeting to ensure everyone’s safety,”

Barbara sucked in a deep breath through her nose. She was not pleased at hearing this. But now, especially now, she needed to pick and choose her battles carefully.

“Fine, we’ll be there,”

Lawrence looked surprised at how quickly she agreed, but nevertheless nodded gratefully “Alright then, I’ll send you an email with more details,” he took half a step towards the door and paused “I’m...I’m sorry, I should have prevented this, but I failed and a student go hurt on my watch,”

He turned back, glint of steel in his eyes “And I promise, I will not let anything happen to Jim at tomorrow’s meeting. 

Momentarily caught off guard, it took Barbara a few seconds to find her tongue “Th-- That sounds good, I’ll see you tomorrow,”

Lawrence nodded in acknowledgement before he turned and left, heading out the door and walking away down the hall.

Barbara let out a breath, and then pulled one in. Breathe for five, hold for five, exhale for five; repeat.

Steadier now, Barbara headed out of the break room and back towards imaging. Seeing the waiting chair empty and the In-Use sign lit up, she discreetly stepped through the side door that lead into the observation booth. Jenkins was there, along with the tech, and through the window she could see Jim laying on the table with the x-ray machine hovering above him.

She and Jenkins locked eyes and nodded in silent greeting as she stepped up to his side. Watching Jim lying back with the large machine looming as it beamed radiation into his skull. But one glance at the clock on the wall was all it took to remind her of what was at stake.

They had a little time left, but not much.

Jenkins had mentioned he was mostly thinking about keeping him overnight to avoid aggravating his injuries. Maybe she could convince him that taking Jim home where he could relax would be better for him mentally? No, that wouldn’t be well received. Jenkins would interpret that as Barbara undercutting his professional opinion. Which to be fair, it was. But that meant she had to consider…

“Have you decided what to prescribe him yet?” she whispered

Jenkins gave a little start of surprise “Some ibuprofen for the pain and inflammation, along with antibiotics to prevent infection,”

“Would it be alright if you wrote it out now so I can go pick it up?”

“Don’t you want to….” his gaze slid over to where Jim was lying on the x-ray table.

Barbara had to strain to keep her tone light, already feeling slimy from the lie she was about to tell to someone she trusted and respected a great deal “I know Jim’s in good hands with you, I just need to take a step back and clear my head,”

Jenkins relaxed, making the weight of guilt on her chest triple, and pulled out his prescription pad, quickly scribbling on it before handing the top slip over “Ok then Dr. Lake, we’ll finish up here and meet you back in the exam room,”

She thanked him and then hurried out of the room and towards the pharmacy at the other end of the hospital, praying there wouldn’t be a line. In a miraculous stroke of luck the pharmacy was nearly empty, and Barbara was able to get Jim’s medicine in record time.

Rushing back to the exam room, paper bag tucked safely under her arm and throat tightening when she saw the time, Barbara stepped in and saw Jim once again sitting on the exam table talking with Jenkins.

The other doctor turned at the sound of the door opening

“Oh Dr. Lake, you’re just in time. I just got the x-ray results back, we were waiting for you to discuss them,”

She managed to give him a weak smile as she stepped to Jim’s side “Thank you, so what are we looking at?”

Beaming, Jenkins stepped over to where the black and white images were already set up in the illuminator “I’ve got good news,” he traced a finger just under where Jim’s left eye would be “Both of the orbital sockets and zygomatic arches are completely intact, and I see no signs of a le fort fracture,”

Cool relief washed over her, practically knocking Barbara off her feet. Sockets and arches intact, no le fort fracture. It wasn’t as bad as it could be “That’s really good to hear,”

Jenkins flashed her a small grin, before his expression quickly turned somber “However your nose is indeed broken,” he pointed to the image on the far left, where sure enough, the nasal bone was clearly separated from the frontal bone by a large fissure.

“And there is some cracking along the angle of your mandible,” he moved his fingers to trace the image of Jim’s jaw. Barbara had to squint this time, but the cracks were there. 

Lowering his hand, Jenkins turned to face them fully “You’ll have to get looked over by a specialist, I think Dr. Nahreini might be available, but there is a change that these might need to be corrected with surgery,”

Barbara fought not to react to those words “Do you know how soon we can see Dr. Nahreini?” 

Jenkins rubbed his chin thoughtfully “I’m not sure, I’d have to check his schedule, although, assuming surgery isn’t needed, the absolute soonest he could be able to correct these would be tomorrow,”

Her heartbeat skyrocketed. That was not good, there was still a chance Jenkins wouldn’t keep Jim overnight, but they were out of time and the risks were too high for her to take that gamble. Which left Barbara with only one option. Just the thought of what she was about to do was almost enough to make her physically ill, but she had no other choice.

Not unless she wanted Jim’s transformations exposed to the entire hospital.

 “Do you mind looking at his schedule right now? I’d like to be able to make a plan as soon as possible,”

Jenkins raised an eyebrow at her, but he looked curious rather than suspicious “Ok then, I’ll be right back,”

She smiled and nodded as he stepped out the door, even as her pulse pounded in her ears, the smile dropping off her face the second he left. Barbara waited half a minute before cautiously peeking her head out the door. When she saw the hallway was empty she knew they had to move fast.

“Ok Jim we need to go, up up up,”

Jim looked confused, or perhaps he was still in a daze from the morphine, but nevertheless complied and got to his feet.

After one more glance up and down the hall and then Barbara was hurrying out of the room, steering Jim in front of her by the shoulders.

With every step her heartbeat ratcheted up a notch, terrified that someone would see her and ask what the hell she was doing. They managed to get to the parking lot without incident, although seeing the sun touching the horizon did give her a miniature MI.

“Ok sweetie just lie down in the back seat now,”

After she opened the door for him Jim flopped down on the back seat; groaning and clutching his jaw. Barbara winced and hustled into the driver’s seat. Ice settling in her ribcage and creeping out through her veins as she started the car and pulled out of the parking lot and into the street.

And despite the fact that the sun would be down in a matter of minutes and this was the only way to keep Jim’s secret from being exposed. The guilt of what she’d just done, both as a mother and a doctor, pounded into her like a hammer.

This is abuse. Depriving children of medical care is abuse. And you should know, didn’t your own mother refuse to get you glasses until high school.

Barbara jerked in her seat when she saw the flash of motion in the rearview mirror and heard a whine of protest from the carseats. Jim’s groans becoming husky.

The chill in her blood somehow became even colder. Suddenly she was very aware of each and every other car on the road, of the people walking on the sidewalk not six feet away.

Please don’t let anyone notice. Please just let us get home safe.

There would be consequences for this. Severe consequences. She may even lose her job, and honestly Barbara deserved much worse. But that didn’t matter right now. What mattered was keeping Jim safe.

The twenty minute drive felt like a lifetime, but finally she was pulling into their garage, door lowering shut behind them.

The second the door shut for good Barbara allowed herself only one deep, shuddering breath, to dispel the frost in her chest, then she was up and out of her seat. Going around and reaching in to help Jim extract himself from the back of the car.

“That’s it honey, inside to the couch, we’re almost there,”

They were home now. There would be a reckoning for what Barbara had done, but for now they were safe.

She managed to herd Jim inside towards the living room, where he promptly collapsed on the couch with a grunt, raising the ice pack back over his eye. The constriction from his now too small clothes couldn’t be helping anything. But helping Jim into more comfortable clothes would have to wait until she took care of more pressing matters. 

While Jim settled himself on the couch, Barbara gave him a once over. From what she could tell at a glance it didn’t look like the shift to his blue form had made Jim’s facial injuries any worse, of course it hadn’t made them any better either. The swelling looked strange transferred over to more angular features. Blue skin giving all of his bruises a navy cast. But what shocked her the most was that, while the bits of old dried blood on his skin were still rusty brown, the fluid leaking from his uncovered cuts was a brilliant, royal blue.

Barbara could spend time puzzling over the implications of that later, right now she had bigger fish to fry.

Scurrying into the kitchen, Barbara grabbed a glass from the cabinet and ripped open the prescription bag. First Jim needed to take a dose of painkillers. He was already probably coming down from the morphine they gave him at the clinic, so she needed to get the ibuprofen into his system as fast as possible. Especially if he wanted any chance at sleep tonight.

“uh...muh,”

Barbara unscrewed the cap from the first bottle and looked down at the tiny pills. Should she alter the dosage to Jim’s new height and weight? No, she didn’t know near enough about these drugs or Jim’s nighttime physiology to risk playing with medications. They’d just have to give him the prescribed dosage and hope for the best.

“Muh,”

Her eyes flickered back towards the glass she’d pulled out. Jim shouldn’t have any of these on an empty stomach. But solid foods were out of the question. Water was good but he should have something substantial to. Broth maybe? Applesauce? But right now neither of those things were palatable to him. He really liked motor oil when he was blue but Barbara had no idea how nutritious that actually--

“Mah!”

She snapped her head over towards the couch. Jim was lying propped up against the end, working his jaw to try and form words.

“Sweetie sweetie--” Barbara hurried over towards his side “Don’t talk right now, we don’t know how badly your jaw was damaged, any kind of talking or movement could make things worse,”

Jim slackened against the couch, only for one arm to fumble for the notebook and sharpie on the coffee table. Grabbing them, he scribbled something on the notebook and then flipped it around.

This ok?

“Yes that should be fine,”

Although now Barbara wished they were both fluent in ASL, that would make this a lot smoother. And she didn’t know if it was the morphine wearing off or the shift to his blue form, but it was clear from the focus in his eyes and the alertness in his posture, that Jim was now completely lucid.

“You just lie there and try to relax, I’m going to get you your medicine and then--”

A hand on her wrist stopped her from heading into the kitchen.

Barbara immediately turned back to face him “Jim, what is it? Do you need something?”

He looked up and met her eyes, and despite the swelling and the bruises and the overall shift of Jim’s features into something other than human, one look at her son’s face and Barbara could tell that he was completely heartbroken. 

I need to tell you something

*

Barbara pulled into the school parking lot, glancing at Jim from the corner of her eye, nose freshy reset and bandaged.

This morning they’d gone back to the hospital as early as they could, where Jenkins and Nahreini were waiting for them. Like she knew they would be in the very strongly worded email Jenkins had sent her last night.

The only positive things about their return visit was that Nahreini had been able to reset Jim’s nose by hand under local anesthesia. And he’d determined from the CT scan that surgery, or even getting the mandible fixed in place, wouldn’t be necessary. Just rest and a liquid diet.

Although they did have to be at the dentist at noon to get Jim’s missing tooth checked out.

Nahreini had volunteered to go with Jim to the dentist, claiming that he needed to make sure the dentist was fully aware of the damage on Jim’s jaw, but the way he’d looked at Barbara while he said it made it clear that this was less of a favor and more that he didn’t trust her to make appropriate choices regarding Jim’s medical treatment.

She’d taken him up on the offer all the same.

The rest of her coworkers hadn’t said anything, but the way they’d looked at her had said it all.

They’d looked at her like she was one of those parents. That thought they knew better than the trained medical professionals. One of those doctors. That developed an ego and refused to work as a team.

And even if Jenkins hadn’t made it explicitly clear to her in the hallway while Nahreini was resetting Jim’s nose, there was an email burning a hole in her inbox.

While Jim was at the dentist this afternoon, Barbara would be sitting down with the medical director to discuss her future at Arcadia Oaks Medical Center.

Needless to say Barbara wasn’t looking forward to that, quite frankly she was still amazed that they’d cleared them to go to this meeting at the school in the first place. Of course this meeting wasn’t anything she was looking forward to either.

Last night Jim had managed to give her the full story of what happened through notes scrawled on the notebook he now carried with him everywhere.

Some of the things he’d told her had been more or less what Barbara expected, but some of it had shaken her to her core.

Even over twelve hours later she was still reeling.

Barbara glanced over to Jim in the passenger seat “You ready?”

Looking up, he gave a curt nod.

Forcing down the lump in her throat, she stepped out of the car, Jim following, and headed into the building. It was the same as it had been last September, right down to the sour faced receptionist directing them into a large conference room.

Everyone else was already there. A balding man with a bushy mustache that she knew to be principal Levit sitting at the table with a gray haired woman, presumably superintendent Kuhn, by his side. A laptop along with several stacks of papers on the table in front of them. Lawrence and a woman in a police officer’s uniform standing behind them. Sitting across from them was a blonde boy, arms folded and glaring out the window, and a blonde woman right next to him. Steve and his mother. Next to them were two empty chairs awaiting their arrival. 

Their heads swivelled towards them at the sound of the door opening “Oh good you’re here,” Levit gestured towards the empty chairs “Please have a seat, we’re just about to get started,”

Barbara nodded in acknowledgement as she and Jim took their seats, Barbara next to Steve’s mother and Jim on her other side, the boys separated by the two women. Unsurprisingly, Jim’s numerous bruises and bandages drew stares from everyone in the room.

“So uh…..Jim,” Lawrence said slowly “You doing better?”

Jim flipped a few pages on his notebook and held it up.

Can’t talk jaw busted

The awkward atmosphere in the room intensified.

“Oh-- ummm….ok,”

For a few seconds they all sat in complete silence. Levit glanced from side to side at the four people in front of him and let out a husky sigh.

“Barbara Lake, Naomi Palchuk, glad to see you here, although I wish we were meeting under better circumstances,”

His gaze flickered back and forth between the two of them again, before he sucked in a deep breath and netted his fingers in front of him “Let’s get right to it. Yesterday after Mr. Lake spilled the contents of his backpack in the hallway Mr. Palchuk came over and began….teasing him,” Levit paused, seeming to struggle for the right words “In response Mr. Lake lashed out verbally, after which Mr. Palchuk lashed out physically. Do both of you agree that this summary of events is accurate?”

“Yes,” Barbara replied, that lined up with what Jim had told her.

“Yes, we do,” Naomi parroted.

Both of their sons stayed silent.

Levit glanced over to Kuhn, the two of them sharing an uncomfortable look, before Levit turned back to them “Are either of you aware of the existence of a video?”

Naomi’s eyes went huge “A video?”

“N-- no I’m not,” Barbara stammered out.

This was news to her, Jim hadn’t mentioned any kind of video. 

Levit grimaced before opening his laptop “Yesterday evening it came to our attention that someone had taken a video recording of the incident and posted it online, where it’s already started circulating through the community,” after tapping at the keyboard a few times he turned the laptop towards them “ I would like to show this video to you in the interest of full disclosure, although if you don’t want to watch that is perfectly acceptable,”

“No,” Barbara said, forcing her voice to sound steadier than she felt “I want to see this,”

Grim faced, Naomi nodded along with her.

Mouth twisting in an effort to suppress a deep wince, Levit pressed play on the video. The footage was shaky and blurry, clearly done with a cell phone camera. It showed one of the school halls crowded with students, the occasional elbow or shoulder cutting into the view. Jim and Steve took up the majority of the screen, both of them looking quite hostile. Jim was getting up in his face and yelling, but between the loud hallway and the poor audio quality it was impossible to determine what he was saying. Then in a flash Steve swung up his fist and knocked Jim to the ground. Getting on top of him and punching him repeatedly in the face, teeth bared in a furious snarl. One of his punches landed with a sickening crack, blood spraying across the lockers. But Steve didn’t even slow down.

Barbara felt a hand fly over her mouth, from beside her she heard Naomi let out a gasp.

She couldn’t look away, the hole in her stomach getting deeper and deeper as she kept watching. Just looking at Jim’s injuries had given her a good idea of just how brutal the attack had been, but knowing didn’t prepare her for actually seeing it happening with her own two eyes.

Jim didn’t watch, silently staring down at the floor, although he had to have heard. Glancing over on impulse, Barbara saw that Steve was still staring out the window, jaw clenched and arms folded. But only now did she notice the bandages wrapped around his knuckles.

Steve had beaten Jim so viciously that he’d actually damaged his own hands.

On the screen Steve’s attack continued for about thirty seconds before a large blonde teacher swooped into frame and wrestled Steve off of Jim. Then the video cut abruptly and ended. Levit shut the laptop with a click “The school is still looking into who posted it and trying to get the video taken down, but you know how these things are once they get out there…”

Barbara did know. Once something was up on the internet it was out there forever. Now there was a video of her son being assaulted that was out there for all the world to see.

“Now Dr. Lake,” Kuhn sat up straighter and steepled her fingers “Typically we try to resolve these matters within the school, but given the severity of the situation I understand if you would want to press criminal charges,”

Her eyes briefly landed on the policewoman, who for her part remained impassive.

“If that is something you want to do you would have the school’s full cooperation. I only ask that you let us know what you decide to do as soon as possible,”

The room went silent, everyone watching Barbara with bated breath.

“I...I’m really not sure here,” Barbara said slowly “I would like to see what the school decides to do before I make my final decision,”

Levit nodded at her words “That seems fair. Jim, do you agree?”

Jim gave a quick nod in return.

“I’m sorry but given the circumstances we’re going to need an actual--”

A quick scribble of the sharpie and Jim was holding up another note.

I agree with everything my mom just said

Levit leaned back “Alright then, given that we all agree on how the events transpired, Lawrence and I--” the coach stepped up to his side “Would like to propose this course of action,” 

He looked over and addressed Steve directly for the first time “Suspension for the rest of the school year, effective immediately, along with mandatory biweekly sessions with the school psychologist, starting this year and into the next,” Levit pulled a chunk of papers off the stack in front of him “Mr. Palchuk this means that you will not be allowed to attend class or any school activities until the start of the next school year in August. We will provide you with supplemental educational materials to keep up with your coursework for this semester and arrange for you to take your final exams at the district offices, in addition you will also start seeing the school psychologist there as well,”

Steve leaned forward, gripping the edge of the table and unintentionally putting the bandages on display “Ok...but I’ll still be able to play on the basketball team...right?”

Kuhn’s eyes narrowed “Sports teams are included under extracurricular activities, all of which you are not going to be allowed to attend,”

“B...but the finals are in two weeks!”

Lawrence stared down at him evenly “Then it looks like you’re going to miss them, you’ll have to try again next year,”

Steve’s face fell, he looked so sad and lost. And even though her own son was sitting next to her with a cracked jaw and broken nose; Barbara couldn’t help but feel a swell of pity for Steve.

He may have been the one who hurt Jim so badly he couldn’t see out of one eye, but he was just a child to. And what Jim had said to him….she couldn’t believe her own son was capable of being so cruel. 

Her ribcage tightened.

No, with what Jim had just learned she absolutely believed he could.

Steve slammed a fist against the table, face flushed scarlet “But this isn’t fair!” 

Barbara reflexively angled herself in front of Jim while Naomi placed two restraining hands on her own son. Jim didn’t react in the slightest, just kept hanging his head in silence.

“Steve please I know y--”

“But if he--” Steve stabbed an accusatory finger in Jim’s direction “Hadn’t pushed me! I never would have--”

“Banned,” Lawrence said stonily, folding his arms across his chest.

“W-- what?” Steve stammered out.

“Not only are you suspended for the rest of the year, but you won’t be coming back to the basketball team ever,” the chill in his voice was glacial “Not in two weeks, not next year, or any year after that,”

“But-- I-- you can’t--”

“That’s enough Palchuk!” Lawrence bellowed, causing everyone in the room except Jim to jump “Not only are you permanently barred from the basketball team, but if you put a single toe out of line, I’ll see you banned from every sports team in the district!” 

“B-- buh--”

“And if you screw it up again,” Lawrence got up close, hands balled in fists at his sides, tone dropping dangerously low “Then we’ll start talking about real consequences,”

Steve sat there mouth gaping open and shut like a fish, shocked into silence.

“I’m going to give you a real hard truth Palchuk,” he stepped back and refolded his arms “In life there’s no trouble so deep that you can’t get yourself deeper. So if you don’t want this to get significantly worse than it already is. Stop. Digging.”

Steve sat back and shut his mouth. Face red.

Things were silent for a few beats before Naomi spoke up, voice brittle “Thank you, we find that punishment more than acceptable,”

Barbara gave a brusque nod “That sounds acceptable to me as well, I don’t think criminal charges need to be added on top of that,”

The school was taking this seriously. Besides, another investigation was the last thing she and Jim needed.

Naomi, Kuhn, and Levit all visibly relaxed at that, the principal glancing over towards Jim “Do you agree Jim?”

Once again he held up the note.

“And would you both agree to make official statements stating your decision to not press charges?” the policewoman spoke for the first time.

“Yes, we can do that today,”

Yes

“I believe that will be all for you Ms. Palchuk,” Levit handed her the papers in his hands “Here’s the formal statement of Steve’s suspension, with my contact information attached. We’ll email you a copy as well, along with the forms for the school psychologist. We’ll put together the educational material for Steve’s suspension and get it to you before the end of Spring break. And if you have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to contact me directly,”

Naomi bobbed her head up and down while grabbing the papers, muttering a quick ‘thank you’ before pulling Steve up and hustling him towards the door. It looked like she couldn’t get out of here fast enough. Not that Barbara could blame her.

After the door shut behind them Barbara let out a small sigh of her own and started to rise out of her seat. Finally they could cross this off their list and get back to--

“Actually Dr. Lake we’re not quite done here,”

She froze midway out of her chair, Jim perking his head up.

“I’m sorry?” 

The look Levit and Kuhn shared with each other made her uneasy “Steve’s actions were reprehensible, regardless of what Jim said, but by the same note we can’t ignore what Jim said to him only because Steve lashed out inappropriately,”

Barbara numbly sank back into her seat, queasy feeling burning to life in her gut “So...what are you saying?”

Levit leaned forward “We would like to have Jim meet with our school psychologist twice a week for the rest of the school year, and possibly next year as well,” 

The word mandatory hadn’t been said, but Barbara heard it loud and clear.

She swallowed hard “Ok,”

“Now if it’s alright there are a few things we’d like to discuss with Jim,” he paused “Alone,”

Her stomach gave another sickening lurch “But...he…”

Jim scribbled and held his notebook up towards her.

It’s ok I’ll be fine

She met his eyes, and even past the bruising and swelling she could read his desperate plea loud and clear.

We can’t afford to make this any worse.

“Al...alright then,”

“Now Dr. Lake if you don’t mind,” Levit gestured towards a door on his left “Please go wait in my office while we have our discussion with Jim,”

Barbara nodded, not trusting herself to speak, and got to her feet. Allowing herself one final glance at Jim before she stepped out the door.

These were teachers, professionals, they knew how to talk to sick and injured children. Jim would be just fine with them. There was no reason for her to wo--

Barbara stopped dead in her tracks, door slipping from her grip and swinging shut behind her. Dread pooling in the pit of her stomach. Sitting at the desk in front of her was the one person she did not want to be involved right now.

“Hello Dr. Lake,” Dorrie said “I really wish we were meeting under better circumstances,”

Barbara couldn’t speak past the jagged block of ice in her throat.

Dorrie turned in her chair towards her “I’ll get straight to the point. Yesterday the school contacted me after Jim was attacked, and I had planned on reaching out to you yesterday evening, but then one of your coworkers contacted us and claimed that you left the hospital with Jim without being discharged,” she folded her hands in her lap “After hearing that I brought all three of us together yesterday afternoon to determine exactly how events unfolded,” 

On the inside, past the screaming panic in her ears, Barbara was kicking herself. How could she have been so stupid. Of course the school was going to notify CPS when they had an open investigation on them. Of course her coworkers were going to follow protocol. 

Of course these people were going to talk with each other.

Dorrie’s expression was stern “What you did yesterday shows a profound lack of judgement, and while it was good that you brought him back this morning, you never should have taken Jim away from the hospital the way you did in the first place. As a doctor you should know better,”

“I...I understand,” Barbara forced the words out “It won’t happen again,”

Dorrie was unmoved, and why wouldn’t she be? There was no excuse for what Barbara did. And if Barbara really regretted what she’d done then why did she do it in the first place?

“Right now you and I are going to have a discussion about the events of yesterday and what we are going to do going forward,” she pulled a three ring binder stuffed to the brim with papers out of her bag “And while at this point it is not necessary to consider extreme action, let me make it clear that you will no longer be Jim’s primary care provider,”

The cold pit of horror in her belly deepened even as Barbara nodded along in reluctant agreement, sinking into the chair across from Dorrie.

Reluctant because that was the last thing she wanted to be dealing with right now. Agreement because Barbara knew that she ultimately had no choice.

Last night when Jim had told her that his friends had been the ones who called CPS...she honestly didn’t know whether she was shocked or not.

They’d never given any indication that they’d thought something was wrong, and she’d known Toby since he was in kindergarten. It was hard to believe that he-- that they would go so far as to….

Her nails dug into the fabric of her skirt.

Then again, the kids weren’t in kindergarten anymore, and a teenager noticed a lot more than a five year old did. 

At the end of the day Barbara just couldn’t blame them for bringing this trouble to their door. They’d seen a concerning situation with multiple red flags and taken the appropriate actions to help. They were all good, sweet kids who just wanted their friend to be safe.

And they weren’t the ones who’d snuck a badly injured, drugged patient out of the hospital without being discharged, or locked a young child in the basement for years. The reason you’re sitting here is because of you and no one else. And don’t you forget it.

[fireladybuckley]

SanversWeek - Day 3 - “You’re Drunk.”

Summary: Kara is sad when Maggie finds her in the alien bar so Maggie tries to make her night better with hilarious consequences for Sanvers. Word Count: 2238 Tags: @outside-the-government @littlecarowrites@secretgaygentdanvers @queercapwriting @whatif-animagineblog @auduna-druitt @star-trekkin-across-theuniverse @stormsnevercometostay @southernbellestatues Author’s note:    This one was really fun to write, too.  Cap, I borrowed Jessy for this one, I hope you don’t mind! <3  Enjoy!

             Maggie frowned as someone shoved past her as she was entering the alien bar, banging her shoulder, pushing her back into the door frame.

                “Watch it,” she called out, irritated, raising an eyebrow as the person turned and she saw it was Mon El.

                “Sorry Maggie,” he muttered distractedly, before continuing off into the night without pause, clearly in a terrible mood.  Rolling her eyes, Maggie entered the bar and looked around for anyone she knew, immediately spotting a distraught-looking Kara in a booth near the back.  Guessing that Mon El’s storming out and Kara’s morose expression had a common origin, Maggie made a beeline for Kara’s booth, smiling as Kara looked up when she heard Maggie coming.

                “Hey Kara, are you okay?” Maggie asked, her voice concerned as Kara attempted to smile back at her.

                “Yeah,” Kara said, and Maggie got the feeling it was an automatic response.  She crooked an eyebrow at Kara, who sighed and gave her a weak smile.  “Okay, no, but whatever, it’s okay.”

                “Does the moody frat boy that bumped into me on the way out have anything to do with it?” Maggie asked sympathetically, sliding into the booth.  Kara looked at Maggie pleadingly for a second, then sighed again and nodded.

                “Yeah, he really does,” Kara said glumly, spinning ice cubes around her empty glass with her straw.  “It’s all to do with him.  Y’know, he can be a real jerk sometimes!” Kara seemed indignant and even a little surprised at this, and Maggie bit her tongue to keep a sarcastic comment from escaping.  She watched Kara for a moment, poking at the ice cubes and looking so sad that Maggie felt an overwhelming desire to make it better.

                “Come on, Little Danvers.  Let’s get some things to drown your sorrows and crash at your sister’s place.” Maggie started to rise, gesturing to Kara to follow.

                “Oh, but don’t you guys want to be alone?” Kara asked, unable to banish the hopefulness that welled inside her at Maggie’s words. “Three’s a crowd, right?”

                “Don’t be silly, Alex and I have nothing important planned tonight.  Come on.”

                Kara hesitated for only another second before smiling and getting up, following Maggie to the bar, where she ordered a small bottle of Aldebaran rum, to go.

                “That stuff’s toxic for humans,” the bartender warned, though he passed the bottle to her as she held out several bills to him.

                “I know, it’s not for me,” Maggie told him, jerking her head in Kara’s direction as the Kryptonian came up behind her.

                “What? Oh, Maggie, no, it’s okay, don’t-”

                “Relax, Kara.  I’m not going to force you to drink any.  I just want you to have the option in case you’re feeling blue later.”

                Kara reluctantly fell silent as Maggie pocketed the small bottle and they left the bar together and headed down the alleyway towards where Maggie had parked her car.

                “We could fly…” offered Kara, holding back a small giggle as Maggie raised an incredulous eyebrow at her.

                “No thanks, Little Danvers.  I like my feet to stay firmly on the ground, if it’s all the same to you. You can fly, if you want,” Maggie said, as she unlocked the driver’s side door and got in.

                “Nah, it’s okay.  I’d rather stay with you.”

                Maggie smiled to herself at these words as Kara let herself into the passenger seat.  The fact that Kara was really starting to warm up to her made her happy, and she was starting to regard Kara as something of a younger sister herself.  They drove in silence aside from Kara’s fingers rapping lightly on the door, and were at Alex’s apartment in no time.

                Maggie let them both in and Kara immediately beelined for the couch, flopping down on it with a heavy sigh.  Chuckling, Maggie quickly put in an order for pizza, then set to pouring the rum into a glass while they waited.

                “Here, Kara.  I know you don’t usually drink, but I think this’ll help you feel a little better. It’ll help you relax,” Maggie said, coming over to the couch and sitting down, offering Kara the glass.  She looked at it warily, but then sighed and sat up, taking it from Maggie.

                “Y’know what, you’re right. I deserve to have a good night, even if he wants to be impossible!”

                “That’s the spirit,” Maggie said, chuckling at Kara’s continued avoidance of bad words.  Maggie would have said “colossal douchebag”, but she knew Kara wasn’t the type to say things like that.  Kara sniffed the liquid in the glass, winced slightly, then took a deep breath.  At an encouraging nod from Maggie, she tipped her head back and downed it one gulp, a disgusted look on her face as she absorbed the taste.  Maggie smiled and patted Kara’s shoulder as her expression quickly cleared, then she grinned loopily at Maggie, swaying slightly even while she sat.   “How is it?” Maggie asked, trying not to laugh as Kara grinned goofily at her.

                “I feel floaty again,” Kara giggled, and Maggie bit her lip to hide a smile, heading into the kitchen to make some popcorn as Kara giggled to herself on the couch.  After the popcorn had been popped and buttered, and Kara had stumbled her way into the kitchen, drawn by the smell of the snack, the door buzzer sounded.

                “Perfect timing,” Maggie said, as Kara shoved a handful of popcorn gleefully into her mouth.  Shaking her head, Maggie took her wallet out of her back pocket and opened the door, smiling at the young guy standing there, holding their pizzas.

                “Hey Jessy, thanks-” Maggie began, before being drowned out as Kara yelled from behind her.

                “JESSY! Yay!  My favourite person ever!” Kara called obnoxiously loudly from the counter, waving enthusiastically.  Looking slightly alarmed, Jessy waved back with one hand, balancing the pizza boxes in the other.

                “Hi Kara,” he called, then glanced down at Maggie. “Hi Maggie.  Is she drunk?”

                “Yeah,” Maggie groaned a little, feeling a little second-handedly embarrassed as Kara continued to wave, wondering if getting her drunk hadn’t been one of her better ideas.

                “Thanks,” Jessy said, handing over the pizzas as Maggie handed over the money, plus a very large tip.  “I’ve never seen her drunk before,” he chuckled, looking amused as he pocketed the money.

                “Yeah, I hadn’t either, until about five minutes ago,” Maggie admitted a little awkwardly, balancing the pizzas on her hip.

                “Well, have a good night.  Say hi to Alex for me,” he said, smiling.  “Bye Kara!” He waved at her and turned to leave, as Kara yelled enthusiastically back, making Maggie wince slightly.

                “BYE!”  

                Shaking her head, Maggie brought the pizzas over to the counter, retrieved plates and opened up the boxes.  Kara immediately grabbed a slice and began eating it, as Maggie took a slice and put it on her plate, then loading Kara’s plate up with several more slices and sliding it over to her.

                Kara was already finishing her third piece before Maggie had finished half of her first, when the lock turned and Alex came in, looking surprised to see them there.

                “Oh, hi guys,” she said, putting her keys away and shrugging out of her jacket.

                “Alllllexxx!” Kara sang happily, spinning around on her stool and nearly falling off.  “You’re here!”  There was a note of delighted surprise in her tone and Alex raised an eyebrow, glancing at Maggie, who looked torn between facepalming and bursting into laughter.

                “Um, yeah, I live here,” Alex said, laughing a little uncertainly as she approached the kitchen.  “You’re drunk, aren’t you?”

                “Yup!” Kara said happily, going back to her pizza. “Maggie’s the best.  She got me booze and pizza and Jessy said hi and Mon El is a jerk.”  Kara had said all of this very fast before sticking the pizza back in her mouth and chewing contentedly.  Both eyebrows raised now, Alex looked at Maggie for an explanation, as Maggie shrugged helplessly.  Alex reached out to take Maggie’s hand and pulled her over into the living room, close to the raised bed platform.

                “What did you do?” Alex said in a hushed voice.  

                “She was sad at the bar, I had to do something, she had those puppy dog eyes…” Maggie explained, her hands up in front of her chest in a defensive shrug.  “What would you have done?”

                “I wouldn’t have bought her Aldebaran rum, for starters,” Alex groaned, shaking her head.  “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?!”

                “Oh come on, Danvers, she’s fine.  She’s just a little giddy right now, the pizza will mellow her out.”  Alex sighed a little, and Maggie smiled at her.  “Come on. Kara loves me for this, I’m like the cool older sister now.”

              “Hey!  The position of cool older sister has already been taken, thank you,” Alex said, feigning offense.  Maggie grinned and reached out, wrapping her arms around Alex’s middle as Alex leaned down a little, putting her forehead against Maggie’s, her hands on Maggie’s neck, her fingers gently tickling Maggie’s skin.  Maggie tilted her head up and their lips met, their bodies pressing closer together as the kiss deepened.  They were lost in each other’s embrace, until:

                “Alex and Maggie, sittin’ in a tree.  K-I-S-S-I-N-G!” Kara sang from her stool, grinning and laughing like she’d never heard anything so funny.

                “Oh. My. God.” Alex breathed slowly, as they parted only an inch or two.  Maggie’s chest shook for a moment as she tried and failed to hold in her laughter, and Alex groaned, clinging to Maggie for strength for a moment before taking a deep breath and moving away from her girlfriend.

                “Very funny, Kara,” Alex said, shaking her head and joining her sister in the kitchen, giving up for now.  Maggie joined them as well and they all ate their fill of pizza, Kara enjoying a full one to herself while Alex and Maggie ate half of the second.  

                By the time the three of them retired to the couch, Kara’s drunken haze had started to wear off.  Within the first fifteen minutes of the movie they’d chosen, Kara’s head had drooped and within another minute she was fast asleep and snoring.  

                “Whew,” breathed Maggie, as Alex snorted slightly.  

                “I told you what she was like when she was drunk.  It’s not my fault you didn’t believe me,” Alex said, shaking her head but pulling Maggie closer.

                “Yeah, I know, but I thought you were exaggerating at least a little,” Maggie said, snuggling closer to Alex’s side and laying her head on her chest.  

                “Not even a little,” Alex confirmed, chuckling softly.

                They watched the rest of the movie and while Maggie was brushing her teeth, Alex maneuvered Kara into better place for sleeping, positioning her on her side, putting a pillow under her head and covering her with a blanket.   Alex leaned over and brushed some hair out of Kara’s relaxed face, stroking it for a moment, a small smile curling her lips.  

                She joined Maggie in the bathroom and before long they crawled into bed together, though neither of them was particularly sleepy yet. Predictably, this lead to some touching and muffled giggles, Alex rolling over on top of Maggie and leaning down to kiss her as Maggie’s hands roamed Alex’s torso and lower, making Alex’s breath hitch through the kiss.

                They kissed for a long time, their tongues clashing faster and their movements becoming more fevered as they teased each other, their odd comments hushed and soft, both quite aware that Kara was sleeping not very far away.  Alex had successfully removed Maggie’s pants and was teasing her through her panties when Kara shuffled and groaned on the couch, making both Maggie and Alex freeze on the spot, listening hard.   After a moment of silence, they figured they were all clear and let out sighs of relief and soft, nervous laughter, their hearts pounding.  

                Maggie’s hands slipped under Alex’s shirt and began teasing her nipples when Kara shuffled again, this time mumbling incoherently. They froze again, Maggie’s hand still cupping Alex’s breast as they lay still, hardly daring to breathe.  Silence again.  Biting her lip, Maggie began caressing Alex’s breast again, prompting a soft moan that covered up the sound of Kara shifting yet again.  Arousal burned hot in Alex’s abdomen as she reached for Maggie again, determined to get the upper hand.

                “Guys?” Kara’s groggy voice suddenly cut through the darkness and Maggie stifled a gasp as Alex froze with her hand over Maggie’s pelvis, pressing insistently on a sensitive area.  In the dim light, Alex brought a finger to her lips, indicating that Maggie should be quiet, to which Maggie rolled her eyes and mouthed “obviously!”.

                “Guys, I know you’re awake, your hearts are beating way too fast for sleeping,” Kara mumbled, her words thick and a bit slurred.   Alex thanked her lucky stars that Kara wasn’t thinking straight – sober Kara would have realized the reason for the racing hearts and been scarred for life.  “My head hurts,” she groaned, and Alex sighed, taking her hands away from Maggie and shaking her head.  “Alex, can you get me some water?”

                “You owe me, Maggie,” Alex hissed softly, sighing as she got out of bed, pointing a finger at Maggie, who also looked like she wanted to groan, a hand over her face in defeat.

                “Understood, Danvers.  No booze for the Kryptonian ever again.”